What can be expected of Dallas Woolfolk?

Woolfolk, who had been ineffective in his most recent appearances, returned to the mound for the first time since April 15 Wednesday.

He struck out two batters, retired the side in order and probably most importantly, his velocity, which dipped from last season, was at 94 miles per hour multiple times against the Golden Lions.

"It's been a struggle, but you find how to grow in those times of struggle," Woolfolk said.

Ole Miss reliever Dallas Woolfolk struck out five of the final six batters of the game on Sunday.

Woolfolk claimed the biggest key over the past two weeks has been clearing his mind and focusing on positive thought. He lost his closer role to Parker Caracci in late March. In two of his three appearances prior to Wednesday, Woolfolk failed to record an out.

So he clearly wasn't the Woolfolk who was so dependable last season.

"It's tough when you don't have success and the expectations are high. It's tough on you," Mike Bianco said after Wednesday night's win. "I just think he's lost some confidence. When you lose confidence, you're not as good at anything. You don't move as fast, you don't throw as hard, you don't swing it as fast. You're just not yourself.

Ole Miss' bullpen, once a strength, has turned into a question mark over the past month. Woolfolk's slide has something to do with that. So if he can improve, it would provide a boost for the Rebels' relievers.

The bullpen also got some good news Wednesday when Bianco said Houston Roth, who hasn't pitched since April 10 because of a hamstring injury, should be able to give it a go this weekend.

Which James McArthur will Ole Miss get?

Each of Ole Miss' seven conference series has come down to the series finale, each of which has been pitched by McArthur.

Two weeks ago, McArthur held Georgia to three hits and one run in six innings. Last weekend, he gave up three hits and five runs and lasted just two innings against LSU. So it's hard to tell which McArthur is going to show up from week to week.

He'll face a hot South Carolina squad, which has won six of its past seven games, this weekend. That span includes a sweep of LSU and a series win at Vanderbilt.

The Gamecocks have scored at least eight runs in six of those seven games.

The conference standings

As noted earlier, Ole Miss enters the weekend a game behind Arkansas, which sits atop the SEC West standings.

So if the Rebels were to make up any ground this week, they would obviously need to do well in their series but would need some help from LSU, which hosts the Razorbacks.

The Tigers have struggled mightily on the road but are 23-6 at home. Meanwhile, Arkansas is 4-8 on the road and has lost all three of its conference series away from home, which includes getting swept at Mississippi State.

Ole Miss has lost its past two conference road series but also owns a series win at Texas A&M. The Aggies trail the Rebels by a game in the division but have a tough task on their hands with No. 1 Florida coming to College Station this weekend.